More for the Christmas box and little stitcheries

 Over the weekend I completed knitting another pair of socks that are destined for the Christmas box...

And, a few more little stitcheries for the advent calendars were created too...

Today's quote/poem is from Laura Ding-Edwards...

The Mountain

If the mountain seems too big today

then climb a hill instead.

If the morning brings you sadness

it's ok to stay in bed.

If the day ahead weighs heavy

and your plans feel like a curse,

there's no shame in rearranging,

don't make yourself feel worse.

If a shower stings like needles

and a bath feels like you'll drown,

if you haven't washed your hair for days,

don't throw away your crown.

A day is not a lifetime,

a rest is not defeat,

don't think of it as failure,

just a quiet, kind retreat.

It's ok to take a moment

from an anxious, fractured mind,

the world will not stop turning

while you get realigned.

The mountain will still be there

when you want to try again, 

you can climb it in your own time,

just love yourself 'til then.

yewwwwwww and other mumblings

 Well it was certainly a rude awakening here this morning - looked outside and it's snowing.  SNOWING!!!  And it's three days before the end of May.  What's with that?!!!  Canada in the spring - 

Well....do you see it??

It's right above there ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^

You mean you STILL don't see it???

Well, I can't UNSEE that snow this morning so thought I'd take a video to show you.  Unfortunately I can't get it to load onto the blog.  

Sigh.  

Oh.  Well then.  Surprise!!!!

Today's quote is from Steve Maraboli..."Why let go of yesterday?  Because yesterday has already let go of you"

A little progress and RIP

 First of all, I've completed the stitching on three more pieces for the advent calendars, as you can see here...

I'm trying to come up with two designs that reflect the same 'thing' but yet be different too.  I couldn't find a second gingerbread man that I liked any better than the one on the top, so I simply used the same design but changed it up to make the second one.

And I'm very sad to report that there have been recent additions to the Teddy Bear Graveyard here at Chez Magpie.  Plans are underway for an appropriate ceremonial burial with all due pomp and circumstance necessary under such sad circumstances. Prior to that there will be a certain amount of organ donation.  Please do observe a moment of silence in honour of the body parts....

A new pattern has been drafted and hopefully you can stay tuned for the birth of a new life.  The circle of life, what can I say.

Today's quote..."This woman has fought a thousand battles and is still standing, has cried a thousand tears, and is still smiling.  Has been broken, betrayed, abandoned, rejected, but she still walks proud, laughs loud, lives without fear, loves without doubt.  This woman is beautiful.  This woman is humble.  This woman is YOU!  

A finish and a little progress

 Over the weekend I put the finishing touches on another mile-a-minute afghan.  This one was also designed to use up scraps - a lot of them left over from when I had to order more yarn to complete the earlier mile-a-minute (it's the galloping ick!!).  I've also ordered enough yarn to make two more - one will be grey with black 'centers' and the other will be black with ivory 'centers', not quite so colorful perhaps but I think they will suit the people I'm gifting them to.  More additions to the Christmas box!

And....I did a few more additions to the cross stitch advents, although I think I'm going to replace the candy cane on the right with another design I like better....

I don't normally put too much of a personal nature on this blog but today I am going to make a small exception if only to tell you not to leave something that's happening in your body in hopes that it will go away.  Seek medical help and don't worry about wasting their time.  Last week I had an area of concern removed from the underside of my tongue.  I'm assured by the specialist that it's 'pre-cancerous' and even if it isn't, it was caught in time (concrete results in 3 weeks time).  I have stitches and am relying on the skills that Resident Chef uses with the blender to make me something I can eat.  Some of it doesn't look too appetizing but at least it tastes good!   I've had French toast, beef stew, potato soup, and this morning I had quiche.  All pureed of course.  Makes me a have a whole 'nother appreciation for what babies have to eat!!  All this, not to upset you or make you concerned about me, but to ask you to please not wait to have something checked out.  Early intervention is the key here and something I'm grateful to have known.  

Today's quote..."The happiest people don't have the best of everything.  They just make the best of everything.  Live simply.  Care deeply.  Speak kindly.  Love generously.  Leave the rest to God"

#2 - 4

 I've added some more little cross stitch designs to my advent calendar collection as you can see...

Sorry it's not such a great photo!  I'm hoping that I can come up with two different designs for each (ie. 2 snowmen, 2 Rudolph's, etc).  I know as I get towards the end that's likely to not happen but for the most part I'm going to try.

Today's quote..."Today, close the door to the past, open the door to the future, take a deep breath, step on through and start a new chapter in your life"

A new project - or forty eight

Some of you may remember me showing you fabric advent calendars I made for two of our grandkids last year.  I never was overly happy with them, especially after I realized that the parents would have to come up with 'something' to put in each of the pockets.  Since then I've been thinking about what else I could do and finally have settled on cross stitching little  designs that ultimately will be hung on a quilted Christmas tree.  At the moment the plan is to make 48 little designs (2 calendars) and if I don't keel over in boredom I will also replace the one I made for our older grandson.  Grandma wasn't thinking when she thought it would be smart to make pockets that needed to be filled!  So, here's the first one....

I thought I'd crop this picture so you'd just see the little snowman (which, btw, measures a little less than 2") but then I decided I'd leave a little bit of the prep for the next one there to show you.  For those of you who don't know, that's waste canvas.  The design is worked on that and then the threads of the canvas are removed one by one leaving only the design itself behind.  You can also see faint pencil lines marking out the squares at 3"

Today's quote..."Never think that what you have to offer is insignificant.  There will always be someone out there who needs what you have to give"

Ho hum

 I've looked around for something I could show you today and the pickin's are pretty slim.  So I settled on showing you something that arrived recently in the mail.  Since the pandemic began Resident Chef has been cutting my hair (and doing a fine job!) firstly because the hair salons were closed and then because I realized just how much money I was saving (and now the salons are closed once again anyway).  He's been using his beard trimmer so I thought I would buy the 'proper' equipment for him to use.  This is what we got...

It comes with so many attachments (9) that it will take us eons to figure them all out!  Tonight will hopefully be the inaugural run so we'll see how well it performs...or if I'll need to scrounge out some brown paper bags to wear over my head!

Today's quote..."If you don't like something, take away its only power - your attention"

Two 'nothers

 Over the weekend I finished off another of the projects I had begun pre-cataract surgeries and this will also be added to the Christmas box.  This is a crocheted mile-a-minute design that is very simple and uses up some stash.  Unfortunately the stash didn't extend to enough colours SOOOO....what's a girl to do but order more?  And then THAT set of circumstances leads to having to use up THAT additional stash...so...I've started another of these, only with black as the main colour.  In the meantime, here's the first one...

and here is a closeup...

Here is another recipe we just discovered and love ... it's courtesy of the May 2021 issue of the Food Network Magazine...

GINGER-MANGO "NICE" CREAM

Freeze 2 sliced bananas and 1 diced mango until firm, at least 4 hours. Puree in a food processor with 3 T. agave syrup (we use maple syrup), 1/2 tsp. grated fresh ginger and a pinch of salt until thick and smooth.  Transfer to a small baking dish and freeze until firm.  

=================================================

SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT - For those of you who follow my blog via email, you no doubt are aware that FeedBurner is going away and now there's a mad scramble to find a replacement.  There's a good alternative that you can read about in THIS blog post.  AND...another suggestion....you might consider signing up for INOREADER which is a free service.  It's what I use and where I follow all the blogs I like.  

=========================================

Today's quote..."Respect yourself enough to walk away from anything that no longer serves you, grows you, or makes you happy.  If you aren't being treated with love and respect, check your price tag.  Maybe you've marked yourself down.  It's YOU who tells people what your worth is.  Get off the clearance rack and get behind the glass where they keep the valuables"

 I didn't have anything ready to share in the way of a photo today and then these arrived.....

Thank you Shawn and Winnie!!

Today's quote..."Sometimes doing nothing is doing something very important"

Another finish and a recipe

 Today I have a couple of things to share with you.  First up is that I've finished the latest landscape (well, all but the label!). The photos are pretty awful because we're in a period of dull rainy days here, but you can get the general idea I'm sure.

Above is the original photo, shared with the kind permission of Dale Stewart (thank you!), and is of the Uneeda School near Paradise Valley in Alberta.  Below is what I created using his photo as inspiration...

FOR SALE!

And this is a closeup of some of the embroidery and the border detail

And, because I haven't given you a recipe lately, how about this one?  It's one of my favourites that come out of Resident Chef's kitchen...

POPOVERS

2 eggs
1 c. milk
1/2 tsp. salt
1 c. all purpose flour

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Grease a standard muffin pan & set aside.  Beat eggs until creamy and add remaining ingredients.  Beat until smooth. Note: the batter will be thin!  Fill each muffin cup half full with batter.  Bake for 35 mins.  

Today's quote..."Your terrible job is the dream of the unemployed.  Your house is the dream of the homeless.  Your smile is the dream of the depressed.  Your health is the dream of those who are ill.  Don't let difficult times make you forget your blessings"

A finish

 I began this project before I had my cataract surgery in hopes that I'd be able to work on it during the hiatus period.  That didn't happen, but I did finish it over the weekend....

I was given four balls of the Bernat Velvet yarn and needed to find a project that would use it up (those balls are HUGE and take up way too much stash space).  I don't have an immediate use for a baby blanket but at least it used most of the yarn.

Another wee note re the Velvet yarn - it feels so wonderfully soft but the balls I have had a number of knots which were quite annoying.  And trying to use a pattern with much stitch definition would be frustrating.  I just used a double crochet post stitch which worked fine.

Today's quote....

Hard pressed

I've thought and thought about  what I could show you for a picture today and because yesterday was my first day back to playing in my studio, there unfortunately isn't much.  I *could* show you a picture of Jack the Ripper because he certainly came into play a lot yesterday.  He's a little shy though and doesn't feel as if his best side is showing.  

So...how about I show you some of the mail that arrived during my hiatus from blogging.  First came this...

Some of you might remember that I'm working on a mile-a-minute crocheted afghan which was originally planned to be a stash buster.  Unfortunately the best laid plans of mice and men came out to bite me and I ran out of colour options.  So what's a girl to do but order more?

Sorry about the horribly dark picture (it's raining here) but inside this box are three different shades of 'denim' yarn destined to be three little sweaters for three little boys.  Oh, and there's a ball of white in the bottom that just *might* turn into a snowman.

And finally, this arrived just before I got my glasses and is providing me with lots of interesting reading at the moment....

And here's your quote for today..."If people stopped looking for things that offended them and started looking for things that inspired them, I'm sure we would have a better country"

A return - of sorts!

 Firstly, I want to thank everyone for leaving such wonderful encouraging comments during my enforced hiatus from blogging...you have all been so very kind and I enjoyed reading your words. I've made it through to the other side and now I can see and return to my much-missed normal activities, including blogging, commenting AND needlework.  I hardly know what to do first!!

The other hurtle I need to cross is getting my vaccine.  It seems the computer system doesn't like my health card and keeps insisting I have a duplicate.  I don't, as a couple of visit to the eye doctor will attest.  No problems using it there.  The last time I called to attempt to register they told me that they could see the issue was with their system but unfortunately my file had to be sent 'up the line' and I've been told to wait.  Three weeks now, and counting!  Resident Chef got his first shot (Pfizer) with no problems  so at least he's half protected.  

***UPDATE***
YAHOO!!
VACCINES ARE BOOKED!
May 12 & Sept. 1
HAPPY DANCE!!!

Obviously nothing exciting has been happening here at Chez Magpie, beyond completing the clean out of our friends condo.  She has been moved to a lovely nursing home residence near her daughter and we know she's in good hands there, despite knowing we will miss her tremendously.  

Spring is really trying to make an appearance here and it's inspiring to look out the window towards the river and see all the trees leafing out.  There are so many amazing shades of green this time of year.   I'm looking forward to getting out for walks now that I'm able to see where I'm putting my feet!

And, finally, here's a quote....“We can easily manage if we will only take, each day, the burden appointed to it. But the load will be too heavy for us if we carry yesterday’s burden over again today, and then add the burden of the morrow before we are required to bear it.”

– John Newton

Another teeny update

Just a quick drop in on my part to let you know that I ordered my new glasses today so in about a week I'll be able to see...that will be HUGE after eight very long weeks.  Now, if I could only get the covid vaccination registration site to allow me to register to get my vaccine.  For reasons known only unto itself it insists I have a 'duplicate health card' and kicks me out of the system.  Oddly, I used that same health card when I saw the eye doctor with no issues.  One of those mysteries of life that I sure hope will be rectified soon!! 

LANDSCAPES - FOR SALE

 FOR SALE

The landscapes you see here are all for sale!

Each one is created with fabric and features embroidery, painting, and many other techniques to create the images you see here.  I enjoy all that is old and abandoned - houses, churches, barns and vehicles. Most of the ones on offer here measure approximately 20" - 30" wide and have a hanging sleeve attached.

If you are interested in purchasing a piece of my art for your very own...or....if you would like to commission a creation using your own photograph...please contact me via marmic1954 AT gmail DOT com, using 'Landscape Enquiry' in the subject line. 

230926

HIM AND ME VIII - WAITING FOR SANTA
measures approx. 24x22"

010826

HIM AND ME VII - CHRISTMAS TREE FARM

measures approx. 19x25"

310726

HIM AND ME VI - HIS GRANDPA's HOMESTEAD

measures approx. 17 1/2 x 21"

140726

"LAKESIDE SOLITUDE"

measures approx. 18x20"

200626
'HIM AND ME V - FOOTPRINTS TOGETHER'
measures approx. 19x23"

220526
HIM AND ME IV - SWINGIN'
measures approx. 19x21"

300426

"Him and Me III - Afternoon Stroll"

measures approx. 17 x 22 1/2

170426
"Him and Me II - Still My Everything"
measures approx. 19x21"

130326

"HIM AND ME"

measures approx. 20x22"

040326

"CHERRY BLOSSOM DREAMS"
measures approx. 22x23"

020226

"DANCING SKY"
measures approx. 18x22"

200126
"IN THE PALM OF HIS HAND"
measures approx. 25x21"

070126
"SOLITUDE"

measures approx. 25x17"

140825

"FRIGHTFUL NIGHT"

measures approx. 23x28"

300725

"MORNING COFFEE"   SOLD!

approx. 21x24"

100725

"MOUNTAIN MAJESTY"

Measures approx. 19x23"

Inspired by a colouring book page

300525

"SUMMER AT THE COTTAGE"

NOT FOR SALE

Measures approx. 18x22"

250525
"WHAT GOES AROUND COMES AROUND"

Inspired by a piece of rust-dyed fabric I found
that had this poem written on it..

"If there be righteousness in the heart, there will be beauty in the character.  If there is beauty in the character, there will be harmony in the home.  If there is harmony in the home, there will be order in the nation.  When there is order in each nation, there will be peace in the world".

Created using some of the rust-dyed fabric I
had in my stash.

Measures approx. 30x26"

140425
"TEABAGS AND RUST"   SOLD!
Inspired by a photo by Dale Stewart
and used with his kind permission

Measures approx. 25x20"

060425
"FOGGY MORNING"
Inspired by a photo by Dale Stewart
and used with his kind permission

Measures approx. 29x24"

090325
"HARVEST TIME AT WILLOWVIEW FARMS"
(Abbotsford, BC)
measures approx. 22" square

130225
"Inside, Looking Out"
measures approx. 23x25"
Inspired by a photo by Dale Stewart,
and used with his kind permission

220125
"FALLING LEAVES"
measures approx. 25x26"
Inspired by a photo by Dale Stewart
and used with his kind permission

150924

"WITCH HOUSE - 2"
measures approx. 25x27"

Inspired by a photo by Tracy Baker
and used with her kind permission

060824

"Kawandi Fields"

measures approx. 21x21"
Inspired by a photo by Dale Stewart,
and used with his kind permission

270624
"The Red Chair (Muskoka TB Sanitarium)"
measures approx. 21x29"
Inspired by a photo by Michael Lalonde
and used with his kind permission

140624

"The Roads No Longer Travelled"

measures approx. 22x20"

Inspired by a photo by Dale Stewart
and used with his kind permission

                                        280524

"The Witch House"  SOLD!
measures approx. 27x29"
Inspired by a photo by Dale Stewart (and used with
his always kind permission),
as well as Michael Trueman and Glen Bowe

030524
"Hayfield School"
measures approx. 26 x 17"
Inspired by a photo by Glen Bowe
and used with his kind permission

100424
"Lonely Sentinel"
measures approx. 22" square
Inspired by a photo by Dale Stewart
and used with his always kind permission

260224

"Lonesome Wheel"

measures approx. 22x25"
Inspired by a photo by Dale Stewart
and used with his kind permission

070224

"Grande Ol' Dame"
measures approx 24x20"

 
'Storm on the Horizon'
SOLD!!

Inspired by the preprinted panel

as well as a photo by Kathy Kelly
(used with permission)

Measures approx. 22x26"

121323
'Waiting For Spring'
Inspired by a photo by Dale Stewart
Measures approx. 29x25"

101523

"Abandoned Blues"
Inspired by a photo by Dale Stewart,
used with permission

Measures approx. 22x30"

092323
"ALL ALONE IN THE PRAIRIES"

Inspired by a photo by Dale Stewart
Measures approx. 27 1/2" x 24 1/2" 

081723

"Dead End"

Inspired by a photo by Dale Stewart

measures approx. 26x22"

071823
"Three Churches of Mahone Bay"
SOLD

062623
"TRANQUIL SHORE"

Measures 27x23"
Commissioned

SOLD

042423
"DANDELION LOVE"
Inspired by a photo by Dale Stewart
Measures approx. 22"x29"

020423

"CABIN IN THE SNOW"

Inspired by a photo by Michael Trueman

Measures approx. 30x24"

073122

"SOMEWHERE IN SASKATCHEWAN"

Inspired by a photo by Dale Stewart
measures approx. 29x23"

070922

"HERBIE NEEDS SOME LOVE"
Inspired by a photo by Michael Truman
Measures approx. 26 x 19"

060322

"Browers Homestead"
Inspired by a photo by Glen Bowe
Measures approx. 19" x 28"

SOLD!!

"Cobwebs and Splinters"

Inspired by memories of growing

up with an outhouse

Measures approx. 23 1/2" square

121421

"Ghostly Memories"
Inspired by a photo by Dale Stewart

Measures approx. 29" x 23 1/2"

050521

Inspired by a photo by Dale Stewart

Measures 24 x 28"

020521

Measures 26" x 29"

Inspired by a photo by Dale Stewart

122820

Measures 32" x 24"

SOLD!

Inspired by a photo by Janice Holtom

060520       SOLD!!!

Measures 31" x 23"

Inspired by a photo by Jeff Fuhre

032320

Measures 34" x 25"

Inspired by a free domain photo

012720

Measures 24" x 30"

Inspired by a tractor owned by my uncle

052219

Measures 30" x 23"

Inspired by a photo by John Phillips

010519

Measures 30" x 22"

Inspired by a photo from Dale Stewart

040519

Measures 29" x 22"

Inspired from a photo by Euvah Bryant

102218

Measures 28" x 17"

Inspired by a photo from my personal collection

052818

Measures 31" x 20"

Inspired by a photo from my personal collection

I would like to thank all the great photographers who have been so willing to share their amazing photos with me.  The inspiration you've provided has been invaluable!